Archive for the ‘Man UP for Moms’ Category

One Especially Awesome Dad decides to build a triple rocking chair so that he can read to all three of his kids at the same time.

A doting dad created a triple rocking chair, just so he can read to all three of his children at once.

Hal Taylor said loved to read to his first two children, but when his third arrived he was faced with a dilemma – he could no longer fit all of them onto his lap during story time.

Fortunately, this awesome dad also happens to be a master craftsman – and, one of the best rocking chair carpenters in the world. So he easily came up with a solution – he built a rocking chair with one adult-sized seat and two child-sized seats for himself and his two older children, and then his youngest daughter can sit on his lap while he reads to them all.

Do you proudly display your children’s artwork on the refrigerator, where it remains until the edges fray and it eventually gets covered by the latest math test or shopping list until it ultimately buckles under the weight of 17 magnets? Perhaps it eventually gets covered in a film of errant cooking spray before landing in a Rubbermaid bin or worse, a garbage bin.

One Canadian dad has a far more permanent and portable solution: Keith Anderson’s right arm is covered in tattoos of his son’s drawings.

Keith Anderson’s right arm is inked with his son’s drawings from over the years.
By Katie McLaughlin

“I decided to jump on the idea,” Anderson told HLN, “and get my whole right sleeve done in Kai’s artwork by adding one piece a year for as long as he would like to continue the project.”

“We began tattooing his art work when he was 5 years old,” explained Anderson. “He was just starting kindergarten and had drawn the daisy. After that tattoo I went back and found a few from when he was 4 and added those ones sort of as a primer.”

Since then, Anderson has added one new drawing a year as Kai, now 11, creates something that both father and son agree upon — so long as it fits on Anderson’s arm. Other than being a stickler for remaining true to the size, color and texture of Kai’s drawings, there’s no pattern or theme.

“It’s just fun kid art,” said Anderson.

Anderson’s three most recent tattoos are even more personal because Kai sat with a tattoo artist who supervised as Kai inked his dad in some sections.

Anderson told HLN that Kai “just loves seeing the whole process of his art going from a drawing to a template to a finished tattoo.”

Photographer Chance Faulkner, a friend of Anderson’s, documented the ink during a casual session over coffee in their hometown of Peterborough, Ontario.

Faulkner’s passion for photography sprouted rather serendipitously. He tried to buy a video camera back in high school to film skateboarding when the camera shop salesperson upsold him a fancy still camera. As it turned out, he loved snapping photos. Faulkner took some fine art photography courses in Germany, where he connected with other photographers, further kindling his dedication to his art.

Faulkner told HLN that capturing Anderson’s ink is by far his favorite project.

“It’s great to have an idea in my head about the kind of images that I want and get exactly those images I was waiting for.”

You can follow Keith Anderson on Twitter, and check out Chance Faulkner’s work on Facebook and Instagram & Twitter.

The shootings in Isla Vista, Calif., sent chills down the backs of countless Americans over Memorial Day weekend. Although this isn’t the first mass shooting that has semblances of misogyny (in fact, a great many do), the 140-page manifesto of pure hatred against women and the YouTube video detailing Elliot Rodger’s plans to slaughter “blond sluts” was a gruesome wake-up call for all of us.

How could an educated and privileged 22-year-old still believe that women should be in “concentration camps,” stop having control over procreation and deserve to be killed because they have sexual agency?

But while Rodger’s ideology may have been extreme, it was also frighteningly familiar. The way that we talk about women and the entitlement others have over their bodies is nothing new.

Whether it’s in the way that women are blamed for their sexual harassment (grow a thicker skin, don’t walk around wearing that), their rape (don’t drink, keep your carry keys in your hands, don’t stay out late) or their family planning outcomes (control your libido), there is nothing like the female body to bring out misogynistic entitlement at its worst.

Indeed, the shooting is not an isolated act of violence. The beliefs that motivated the gunman are rampant — and much more widely accepted then many would believe. In our culture, misogyny isn’t the exception, it’s still the rule.

In the wake of the tragedy, the hashtag #YesAllWomen quickly became a safe space of support and solidarity, a platform to share stories and fight back against the types of comments that too many women have encountered in their life. It also became a space for women to explain that entitlement of men over women has got to stop — sexism has got to stop — because it is literally killing us.

Ultimately, the #YesAllWomen rallying cry reached more than 1 million tweets in the days since the tragedy, outlasting even Kim Kardashian’s wedding on Sunday. But women are not the only ones frustrated by our society’s institutionalized misogyny. So many men, too, reported feeling disgusted by the attitudes of the shooter and his alleged peers, the “men’s rights activists” that not only influenced Rodger, but publicly predicted more violence if men aren’t given what they want.

Men deserve their own space to talk back to these “activists.” Here is just a small part of that response, but you can find more responses or post your own on the hashtag #AllMenCan, because all men can have respect for women without ever becoming less of a man.

Don’t look now, but Michael Strahan’s most famous feature is about to get a little alteration. While the 6-foot-5 star poses for a few solo shots during Parade’s photo shoot, his 9-year-old daughter Sophia can’t resist poking fun at her father’s gap-toothed smile. As the images appear on a monitor, she holds her finger up to the screen and mischievously covers the empty space. “That’s better,” she says with a giggle.

Not to Strahan fans. The former NFL star now wakes up millions with his trademark grin and big-kid playfulness in his roles as cohost of Live With Kelly and Michael and special cohost of Good Morning America. And it’s clear that his kids have inherited their dad’s goofy side, which is sure to be front and center on July 17 when he hosts Nickelodeon’s inaugural Kids’ Choice Sports awards. On this sunny Saturday in L.A., Sophia and her fraternal twin sister, Isabella, Strahan’s daughters with ex-wife Jean Muggli, break out the dance moves by the pool and later team up with their 19-year-old half-brother Michael Jr., a psychology major at University of Texas at San Antonio, to tease Strahan, 42, about being a not-so-strict dad. “There are rules!” protests Strahan, who’s engaged to Hollywood Exes star Nicole Murphy. “You have to make your beds.” (Unfortunately, Tanita, 22—she and Michael Jr. are Strahan’s children from his first marriage, to Wanda Hutchins—couldn’t weigh in; a new job in Houston prevented her from taking part in this father-and-kids-reunion.)

It’s also clear that the children possess a competitive streak like their dad, who spent much of his youth in Germany—where his father, an army major, was stationed—before his remarkable 15-year career as a defensive end for the New York Giants. (Strahan retired in 2008 after winning a hard-fought Super Bowl title; now an analyst for Fox NFL ­Sunday, he’ll be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in August.) Ask Michael Jr. for a favorite memory of his pop and he offers: “I was 11 and the Wii had just come out. We were playing tennis, and I beat him!”

Isabella heads for a nearby ­basketball hoop and ­proposes a ­wager: If she makes five baskets in a row, Dad pays up. ­Strahan, clearly believing his money is safe, agrees—then ­watches, stunned and proud, as she sinks every single shot.

PARADE: It looks like you’re out some cash.Michael Strahan: Apparently she’s been practicing! I’ve seen her play—I’ve seen both of [the girls] play on their teams and they’re good—but there’s no way I thought she’d make five shots in a row! Now Sophia’s gonna want to make a deal where she makes five in a row.

It must be nice to have so many of the kids here today. How often does everybody get together?It’s rare, especially as Michael and Tanita get older. But the thing I love is [that] when there’s an opportunity, they’re all for it. Tanita just got a new job, so unfortunately she couldn’t take the time off to come. But it’s never, “I want to hang out with my friends and go to the movies.” My parents included us in everything, and I try to do the same with my kids.

Your son told me he’s not really interested in football. Does that surprise you?Not really. It was never my thing to say, “I played, so you gotta,” because I felt it put more pressure on him than he needed. He played [for two years] in high school and was a good player, but when I saw he wasn’t having fun, I was like, “You don’t have to do it. I played enough for all of us. But you’ve got to find something you enjoy and do your best at it.” Everybody’s got a different path.

Have you worried about how your success might affect your kids?When you’re visible, you do wonder how your kids will handle it. But they don’t play off that. With college kids, it’s usually, “I need this, I need that,” but with Tanita and Michael, I’m the one who’s like, “Do you need anything?” They’re the lowest-maintenance kids. They want to make their own way, which I love. When Tanita graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, I said, “I got some job interviews set up for you in New York. I’m pretty sure if you go in there and present yourself well, you’ll get a job.” And she said, “You know what, Dad? I’m not ready for New York.” I know it took a lot for her to tell me that. At first I was like, “Are you crazy?” But if she felt she needed to start in a smaller market and work her way up on her own, then great.

With his father, Gene, in 2007 (Courtesy of Michael Strahan)

What’s your relationship like with your dad, Gene?Amazing. My father is the most influential person in my career in [terms of] attitude—the understanding that nobody gives you anything in life, you have to earn it. My dad wanted to be an army officer, and to do that he needed to go to college. He had five kids and I was on the way, but he took a chance on himself. He graduated magna cum laude at 30-some years old and [became] an officer. So you can’t tell him what you “can’t” do. His whole thing was, “I don’t want to hear about the problem, I want to see the solution.” There’s always a solution.

Do you look at your work that way?I love solving problems. It makes me happy to juggle all the jobs I do—figuring out which team is supposed to win on Fox NFL Sunday; reacting off the cuff to Kelly [Ripa, on Live]; and now GMA, trying to fit into that group. The great thing coming from sports is you understand the concept of a team. It leaves no room for being selfish, and that’s something I picked up from home.

Your dad sent you at age 17 from Germany to Houston to stay with your uncle Art, a former NFL ­player, giving you the opportunity to play high school football for the first time and possibly get a college scholarship. In hindsight, it was a brilliant move, but how did you feel about it at the time?I was scared to death. Did I necessarily want to do it? No. Was I in a totally different environment with no friends? Yes. Was that hard because I was shy? Absolutely. But I thought, “He knows what he’s talking about. He’s my dad.” So I sucked it up. And when I did play in college, I was on a mission: I’m going to be the best at it. Everything I do professionally, I have that mentality about.

How did his parenting influence how you raise your own kids?My dad was always about when you’re going to do something, not if. I believe in my kids 100 percent. When you have confidence in them, they have confidence in themselves.

At the 2008 Super Bowl (Paul Spinelli/AP Images)

When you were contemplating retiring from the NFL, did you discuss it with your dad?Without knowing it, my dad helped me. I wrote a book [in 2007], Inside the Helmet, with one of my best friends, Jay Glazer. There’s a part where we talk about the toll the NFL takes on your body. Your back, hips, knees, shoulders, and neck don’t work like they used to, but you have to figure out a way around it. After we won the Super Bowl in 2008, I debated, do I play another year? I was talking to my dad, not even really about that, and he brought up that he’d read the book. And it was like at the end of the movie Babe, where the guy tells Babe, “That’ll do, pig. That’ll do.” My dad was like, “There’s no need to do that anymore.” When he said that, I didn’t have to prove anymore that I could do what he sent me to do all those years ago. That’s when I realized I was done. I see guys cry when they retire, but I was smiling because I’d left everything I could out there and I’d made the people close to me proud.

You’re an inspiration to a new generation of players, including Michael Sam, who recently became the first openly gay player to be drafted by the NFL. Have you talked to him since?Yeah, I texted him congratulations. I feel bad for him in the sense that he has a lot of pressure and people looking for him to represent something. Right now, he just needs to represent himself and his family and be the best player he can be. Plain and simple. He’s a football player first and foremost.

Was this a big step for the NFL?Well, it’s a big step as far as people just being who they are. There have been gay players since the NFL started—not open in the public sense, but open in the locker room. Now you’ve got players who say the locker room’s going to be uncomfortable and blah blah blah; I tweeted one back the other day saying, “You and I both know we’ve played with gay guys before, they just weren’t out. Let this kid live.”

It’s one thing for a former pro athlete to get into sports broadcasting, but it’s unusual to become a morning show star. Why do you think you were able to cross over so successfully?

Because I don’t think about failing. If I look back now, I go, “You could’ve been the guy who killed the show ­Regis built!” But at the time I just looked at it like, “This is what I want to do.” And if people see you genuinely having fun and being yourself, especially on a morning show, they connect to it. I’m not perfect; I’ve never professed to be and I don’t want to be. How much fun is that? I’m the guy who looked at [NFL] players and said, “I can do that.” And I’m sure there’s some kid out there looking at me, going, “Man, he’s got the gap in his teeth, he talks with a lisp, and he’s probably spitting over the entire crowd. But if he can do it, I can.”

What do you enjoy most about being a dad?I love being the person my kids depend on to learn. Everything they learn for the most part comes from you—how they treat people, how they look at the world, how they process things. I love being that example for them, just like my parents were for me.

What drives you now?I don’t do it for fame. If you’re doing anything for fame, you’re doing it for the wrong reasons. I do what I do because I love entertaining. I love being good at something. And I love making my family proud. If you have enjoyment for what you do and a sincere purpose behind it, you can do it forever.

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Protective Mothers Alliance International (PMA International) is a international protective mother-driven organization that includes a global network of like-minded organizations working as a team for positive change.Protective Mothers Alliance International (PMA) is co founded by Lundy Bancroft and Janice Levinson, with Janice Levinson as Executive Director. The PMA INTL family consists of protective mother-driven advocates working together as a tight team for change.PMA INTL is working toward bringing about dramatic reform in family court for protective mothers and their children. PMA INTL. supports the efforts of protective mothers in keeping themselves and their children safe from the abuse of a former partner, and in empowering these mothers to become advocates for themselves and others. PMA INTL. has several networks/groups including but not limited to: Man Up for Moms (M.U.M), Hear us NOW!! ( H.U.N) Healing and Prayer, STOP DV by Proxy.PMA INTL's very successful blog talk radio shows had over 6 thousand listeners . PMA INTL's blog entitled: "The Guardian of Truth" continues to be an effective vehicle for education about family court abuse/ corruption. Protective Mothers Alliance INTL. has launched a gold ribbon campaign in an effort to reunite protective mothers and their children who have been separated by the family court.We invite all advocates and their allies around the globe to wear gold ribbons and to tie gold ribbons around trees, to symbolize the effort that protective mothers and their allies are making to reunite children with their moms.
Please join us in supporting this campaign. " The beautiful memories that we have of our beloved children are golden and can NEVER be erased from our hearts and minds."

A STORY OF HOPE: THE LETTER THAT SURVIVED 9/11/ BY YUKA YONEDA / INHABITAT This story was originally published on September 11, 2014 “Remarkably it survived when so much else did not,” said businessman Raviv Shtaingos about a red envelope he decided to pick up on September 11, 2001 as he fled from Lower […]